Rotatable work holder in pencil stamping machines



May 13, 1958 H. A. MINTZ ROTATABLE WORK HOLDER IN PENCIL STAMPING MACHINES Filed March 3, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 H. A- MINTZ May 13, '1958 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed March 3, 1955 p y 7 mw wm W W m r N y R M IN? N% .7 /m% m# a mw r Q h 69R N H. A. MINTZ May 13, 1958 ROTATABLE WORK HOLDER IN PENCIL STAMPING MACHINES 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed March 3, 1955 lice ROTATABLE WORK HOLDER IN PENCIL STAMPHIG MACHINES Henry A. Mintz, Norwood, Mass.

Application March 3, 1855, Serial No. 491,864

7 Claims. (CL 101-11) This invention relates to a machine for stamping insignia, such as names, upon elongated articles, such as wooden lead pencils.

A need has existed for a simple, reliable and inexpensive machine for stamping lead pencils In such machines, a number of pencils should be fed automatically in sequence into the stamping position where printing type is impressed on the side of each pencil through a printing foil to print the desired insignia in gold or other color onto the pencil. Where, as is usual, the pencil is hexagonal in shape, means should be provided to cause thepencil to be held in such a position as to present one side of the pencil in a plane coinciding with the plane of v the type faces in their printing position.

In accordance with the present invention, the foregoing and other advantages are accomplished by modifying the basic stamping machine, as described and claimed in my United States Patent No. 2,604,387, to provide means for holding a supply of pencils, together with a rotatable arbor having a plurality of recesses shaped to pick up a pencil from said supply and move it to the printing position. Means are also provided by imparting a jar to said arbor as it moves the pencil into the printing position whereby the pencil is shaken so as to cause its hexagonal shape to align itself with the corresponding shape of the recess in the arbor. The novel mechanism for accomplishing this action also serves to hold the arbor accurately in the proper angular position to insure proper alignment of the pencil with the printing type.

The foregoing and other advantages of the invention will be best understood from the following description of an exemplification thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. l is a side elevation of one form of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the embodiment shown in Fig. 1, taken from the opposite side, with a portion of a side guard broken away to show the underlying structure;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary view illustrating the operation of the jarring and arbor aligning mechanism;

Fig. 4 is a top view of the machine shown in Figs. 1 and 2; and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary cross section taken approximately along line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

The machine illustrated includes a sub-base 1, upon which is mounted a base plate 2 to which is secured a frame 3. The frame has a pair of upstanding side arms 4. A shaft 5 is rotatably mounted between the arms 4. The shaft 5 carries an arm 6 which has formed thereon a branch arm '7 carrying a pallet 8 rigidly secured thereto. The arm 6 is extended to form a handle 9, whereby the entire arm assembly carrying the pallet 8 with it may be rotated about the axis of the shaft 5. v

The pallet 8, which is of the type described and claimed in my United States Patent No. 2,591,369, consists of a type holding block 10 formed to retain type 11 in place by a clamping bar 12. Before operating on the work in article to be stamped. For this purpose, the block 10 has contained within it a heating element supplied with heating current through a cable 13 extending from any suitable and well-known adjustable current controlling means 14 which has its input current supplied from cable 15.

The printing foils used in machines of this kind usually consist of a strip of paper or plastic coated on one side with a layer of gold leaf or a deposit of metal powder. Such a foil is indicated by the dot-dash line 16 in Figs. 1 and 2, and more directly at 16 in Fig. 4. The foil is supplied from a spool 17 upon which it is wound. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, this foil must be interposed between the face of the type 11 and the surface of the article to be stamped, whereby the coating on the foil is transferred by the heated type 11 to the article. In order to support and feed the foil 16, a frame 18 is pivoted at its ends 19 to the side walls 20 of a frame 21 rigidly secured to the shaft 5. Thus the frame 21 moves as a unit with the combined handle and pallet structure. The outer control portion of the frame 18 snaps under and is retained in position by a spring pressed detent mounted on the arm 6 near the handle 9 and controlled by a button 22, all as more fully described in said Patent No. 2,604,387.

Two corrugated feeding rollers 23 and 24 are rotatably mounted on the side walls 20 of the frame 21. The foil 16 is adapted to be received between the feeding rollers to be advanced thereby. The rotation of these rollers to feed the foil is automatically produced in response to the raising and lowering of the handle 9 by means of ratchet plate 25, detent 26 and detent pawl 27, the construction and operation of which are also more fully described in said Patent No. 2,604,387.

Upon the forward face of frame 18 is fastened a U frame 28 whose side arms 29 and 30 are adapted to receive a rod 31, one end of which is threaded into an opening in arm 30 and the other end of which 'has a head 32 whereby the rod may be turned into position. The rod 31 is adapted to pass through and support the spool 17. In order to exert a tension on the foil 16 so as to keep it in close contact with the type 11, a friction brake 33, held in place by a set screw 34, is mounted so that its outer end bears against an end plate of the spool 17.

In order that the foil 16 feeds properly through the machine, the axis of the rod 31 should be properly aligned with the forward corner 35 of the frame 18. In order to provide an adjustment for this purpose, the frame 28 isrnounted on a pin 36 to permit a limited rotation of frame 28 on the frame 18. The exact position of the frame 28 is fixed by a rod 37 threaded through a block 38 fixed to the forward face of frame 18. A spring (not shown) biases frame 28 so that its upper edge is forced into engagement with the lower end of rod 37. The upper end of rod 37 is provided with a head 39 to turn the rod 37 and adjust the degree to which it rotates or tilts the frame 18. A spring 49 is interposed between the head 39 and the block 38 to retain the rod 37 in its adjusted position. I

In order to support the articles to be stamped at the proper height, a pedestal 41 is secured to the base plate 2 and is in a location directly below the pallet 8 in its stamping position. Ihe pedestal 41 is provided with a pair of standards 42 in which the ends of arbor 43 are journalled. Around the periphery of the arbor is formed; a plurality of ribs 44. The distance between the bases. of adjacent ribs 44 is approximately equal to the widthof one side of a standard hexagonal pencil. Also, pref- Patented May 13, 1958 erably six approximately rectangularly-shaped ribs are providedwhich thus automatically'provide a recess which has the proper angular relation between its sides and is of the proper size to cause a standard hexagonal pencil to nest in said recess with its upper surface properly aligned with the face of the type 11.

The pencils to be stamped are supported on the sides 46 of a U-shaped frame 47 which is supported in an inclined position to cause the pencils 45 to be fed by gravity toward the arbor 43. The lower ends of the sides 46 are supported by a pair of posts 48 fastened to the base plate 2. The upper end of the frame 47 is supported by a plate 49 secured to the base 1.

The arbor 43 is actuated by the motion of the shaft 5. For this purpose a reduced extension 50 of one end of the shaft 5 extends beyond its arm 4 and carries a crankarm 51. Pivoted at the outer end of crank arm 51 is a link arm 52. The arm 52 is formed with a recess 53 which, in its quiescent position, as shown in full lines in Pig. 2, is adapted to rest on one of a series of pins'54. The pins 54, equal in number to the ribs 44, are mounted on a circular plate 55 which is carried by a. stub shaft 56 formed as an extension of the arbor 43 beyond the standard 42, as shown most clearly in Fig. 5.

As the arm 9 is raised, the crank 51 is turned, moving the arm'52 (Fig. 2) to the right. The notch 57, formed at the forward end of the recess 53, engages the adjacent pin 54 and thus rotates the plate 55 in a clockwise direction.

The arbor 43 is held in its quiescent or printing position by a rounded block 58 forced into position between the two lowermost ribs 44 by means of a heavy leaf spring 59, to one end of which the block 58 is fastened. The other end of the leaf spring 59 is secured to a block 61) carried by the base plate 2.

As the plate 55 is rotated, it forces the rib 44 to the right (Figs. 2 and 3) of the block 58 over the rounded face of the block to move the spring 59 to the position as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 3. When the arm 52 has reached approximately the position shown by dotted lines in Fig. 3, the force of the spring 59 causes the rib 44 to the left of the block 58 to slide down the rounded face of the block 58, thus propelling the arbor with a sudden movement to the position shown in Fig. 2, which is the printing position. The force of such propulsion is sufficient to jar the arbor so as to cause the pencil 45a to be printed to seat firmly and accurately in its recess and to cause the previously stamped pencil 45b to be jarred loose and drop, as indicated by the dotted pencil 450 (Fig. 3).

\Vhen the arbor 43 is propelled to its printing position, the pin 54, which was in engagement with the notch 57, leaves that notch and the following pin 54 contacts a recess 61 on the arm 52. The latter pin lifts the arm 52 slightly but sufficiently so that, as the handle 9 moves to the limit of its position, the notch 57 clears the forward pin 54 and thus does not disturb the printing position of the arbor. The recess 61 is formed with a cam surface 62 so that, as the handle 9 is lowered, the cam surface 62 causes the arm 52 to ride freely over the pins 54 which lie in its path on the downward stroke of the handle 9.

In order to form an abutment for the ends of the pencils 45 and also to provide a shield around the arbor moving mechanism, a sheet metal casing 63 is secured to one side of the base 1. The casing 63 is provided with an extended planar face 64 against which the ends of the pencils 45 are pressed to produce the proper alignment and feeding of the pencils to the arbor.

A block 65 is also secured to the base plate 1. At its upper end it carries an adjustable stud 66 which serves as a limiting stop for the downward movement of the printing mechanism. The frame 18 also carries a bearing plate 67. The foil 16 passes between the bearing plate 67 and the head of the stud 66 so that in the printing position.

position the head of the stud raises the foil into engagement with the bearing plate, thus insuring that the foil will be held against the type 11 with the proper tension to produce an excellent uniformity of printing. The space between the face of the block and the standards 4?. is designed to hold the stamped pencils as they drop from the arbor. This space is also of the proper size to hold a standard quantity, e. g., one dozen pencils. The length of the side arms 46 is also designed to hold the same quantity of pencils.

A1; a back stop for the printing mechanism, the side arms 4 carry a rod 68 upon which the back of the arm 6 rests in the limit of its outward motion.

The operation of the machine is as follows. The type 11 is .set up as described in my United States Patent No. 2,591,369. The foil is fed as described in my United States Patent No. 2,604,387. The cable 15 is then energized and the current controlling means 14 set for the pro-per degree of heating of the type. When the proper temperature has been reached, the stamping may begin. A quantity of pencils is placed on the sides 46 with their ends against the face 64. The handle 9 is raised, which causes a rotation of the arbor 43. The arbor picks up one of the pencils 45a and carries it toward the stamping As the stamping position is approached, the spring 59 and block 53 jar the arbor into final position and thus jar the pencil 45a into an accurately aligned position. This same jarring action, as pointed out above, ejects any previously stamped pencil. The type 11 is then pressed through the foil 16 into the upper surface of the pencil 45a to produce the desired stamping of the insignia of the type 11 onto the pencil. The operation is repeated by raising and lowering the handle 9 until all the pencils have been stamped. The accumulation of stamped pencils between the block 65 and the standards 42 is then removed as a unit.

It should be noted that, although hexagonal pencils are mentioned, the above structure will also handle round pencils. Also, the structure can be used to stamp other elongated articles. The principles of this invention can be adapted to a variety of stamping machines. Thus it is to be understood that many equivalents of the details described will suggest themselves to those skilled in the art.

What is claimed is:

1. A stamping machine comprising a base, a rotatable arbor mounted on said base, a plurality of ribs spaced around the periphery of said arbor whereby a plurality of recesses is formed, each of said recesses being shaped to engage an elongated article to be stamped around approximately half of its peripheral cross-section whereby a tendency is created for each of said articles to be jammed into one of said recesses, means for feeding a plurality of said articles toward said arbor, means for rotating said arbor between stamping operations whereby one of said articles is picked up from said feeding means and moved to a stamping position, means for imparting a jar of sufficient magnitude to said arbor as it moves into said stamping position to insure the correct seating of said article in its recess and to cause ejection of a previously stamped article from its recess, and means mounted on said base for stamping the article in said stamping position. v

2. A stamping machine comprising a base, a rotatable arbor mounted on said base, a plurality of ribs spaced around the periphery of said arbor whereby a plurality of recesses is formed, each of said recesses being shaped to engage an elongated article to be stamped around approximately half of its peripheral cross-section whereby a tendency is created for each of said articles to be jammed into one of said recesses, means for feeding a plurality of said articles toward said arbor, means for rotating said arbor between stamping operations whereby one of said articles is picked up from said feeding means and moved to a stamping position, means operating just before said arbor approaches a stamping position for imparting a rapid acceleration to said arbor toward said stamping position and for abruptly stopping said arbor in said stamping position to impart to said arbor a jar of suflicient magnitude to insure the correct seating of said article in its recess and to cause ejection of a previously stamped article from its recess, and means mounted on said base for stamping the article in said stamping position.

3. A stamping machine comprising a base, a rotatable arbor mounted on said base, a plurality of ribs spaced around the periphery of said arbor whereby a plurality of recesses is formed, each of said recesses being shaped to engage an elongated article to be stamped around approximately half of its peripheral cross-section whereby a tendency is created for each of said articles to be jammed into one of said recesses, means for feeding a plurality of said articles toward said arbor, means for rotating said arbor between stamping operations whereby one of said articles is picked up from said feeding means and moved to a stamping position, a. cam member, a spring urging said cam member toward said arbor, said cam member being adapted to move into recesses in said arbor as said arbor approaches a stamping position whereby one side of each such recess slides along said cam member and said arbor is accelerated into said stamping position by said spring with sufficient force to impart a jar to said arbor to insure the correct seating of said article in its recess and to cause ejection of a previously stamped article from its recess, and means mounted on said base for stamping the article in said stamping position.

4. A stamping machine comprising a base, a rotatable arbor mounted on said base, a plurality of ribs spaced around the periphery of said arbor whereby a plurality of recesses, each of which is adapted to support an elongated article to be stamped, is formed, means for feeding a plurality of said articles toward said arbor, an arm rotatably mounted at one end thereof on said base, means carried by said arm for supporting stamping type, a link pivotally connected at one end to said arm, said link having a projection engaging a member on said arbor, means responsive to the rotation of said arm for moving said link longitudinally whereby said projection moves said member and said arbor which thus picks up one of said articles from said feeding means and moves it to a stamping position, and means for imparting a jar to said arbor as it moves into said stamping position to insure the correct seating of said article in its recess and to cause ejection of a previously stamped article from its recess.

5. A stamping machine comprising a base, a rotatable arbor mounted on said base, a plurality of ribs spaced around the periphery of said arbor whereby a plurality of recesses, each of which is adapted to support an elongated article to be stamped, is formed, means for feeding a plurality of said articles toward said arbor, an arm rotatably mounted at one end thereof on said base, means carried by said arm for supporting stamping type, a link pivotally connected at one end to said arm,-a plurality of pins connected to said arbor and disposed about its axis, said link having a projection formed with a forward cam surface which rides over each of said pins in its forward path and with a rearward detent surface which engages each pin in its rearward path, means responsive to the raising of said arm for moving said link in its rearward path and responsive to the lowering of said arm for moving said link in its forward path whereby each raising and lowering of said arm rotates said arbor which thus picks up one of said articles from said feeding means and moves it to a stamping position, and means for arresting motion of said arbor in said stamping position.

6. A stamping machine comprising a base, a rotatable arbor mounted on said base, a plurality of ribs spaced around the periphery of said arbor whereby a plurality of recesses, each of which is adapted to support an elongated article to be stamped, is formed, means for feeding a plurality of said articles toward said arbor, an arm rotatably mounted at one end thereof on said base, means carried by said arm for supporting stamping type, a link pivotally connected at one end to said arm, ,a plurality of pins connected to said arbor and disposed about its axis, said link having a projection formed with a forward cam surface which rides over each of said pins in its forward path and with a rearward detent surface which engages each pin in its rearward path, means responsive to the raising of said arm for moving said link in its rearward path and responsive to the lowering of said arm for moving said link in its forward path whereby each raising and lowering of said arm rotates said arbor which thus picks up one of said articles from said feeding means and moves it to a stamping position, and means for imparting a jar to said arbor as it moves into said stamping position to insure the correct seating of said article in its recess and to cause ejection of a previously stamped article from its recess.

7. A stamping machine comprising a base, a rotatable arbor mounted on said base, a plurality of ribs spaced around the periphery of said arbor whereby a plurality of recesses, each of which is adapted to support an elongated article to be stamped, is formed, means for feeding a plurality of said articles toward said arbor, an arm rotatably mounted at one end thereof on said base, means carried by said arm for supporting stamping type, a link pivotally connected at one end to said arm, said link having a projection engaging a member on said arbor, means responsive to the rotation of said arm for moving said link longitudinally whereby said projection moves said member and said arbor which thus picks up one of said articles from said feeding means and moves it to a stamping position, a cam member, and a spring urging said cam member toward said arbor, said cam member being adapted to move into recesses in said arbor as said arbor approaches a stamping position whereby one side of each such recess slides along said cam member and said arbor is accelerated into said stamping position by said spring.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 675,168 Rosenblum May 28, 1901 747,990 Liberman Dec. 29, 1903 788,767 Gebhard May 2, 1905 1,556,782 Glasgow Oct. 13, 1925 1,644,144 Osborne Oct. 4, 1927 2,249,627 Drucker July 15, 1941 2,604,387 Mintz July 22, 1952 

